Union Ref and Hansa Rollette Ref
}} The Union Ref and Hansa Rollette Ref The name is spelled "Hanza Rollette Ref" in , p.339, but this is a typo. are Japanese 4.5×6 pseudo TLR cameras. They seem to be the first Japanese cameras with the TLR shape. The Japanese Historical Camera, p.23 (in Japanese and English); Japanese-only version in this page of the JCII. Both models are nearly identical and are certainly name variants of each other. Their actual maker is unknown. General description Both cameras are shaped like a twin lens reflex but the viewing lens is not used for focusing. The cheaper versions are fixed-focus, but this is perhaps not the case for the better ones. Fixed-focus: , p.339, about the Hansa Rollette Ref. The camera takes horizontal 4.5×6cm pictures only. The film is advanced by a knob at the top of the right-hand sideplate, and there is a small film retaining flange at the bottom. The viewing hood has an "X"-shaped decorative rib, and a button towards the rear for opening. The Union Ref The Union Ref (ユニオンレフ) is only known from a leaflet dating c.1937, reproduced below, Undated leaflet for the Victory, Semi Dymos, Reex, Baby Ref, Union Ref and Baby Chrome. where it is presented together with the Baby Ref as an affordable reflex camera. No company name is indicated. In the document, three versions are listed: * f/8 lens, B, 25, 50 speeds (¥20 — case ¥6 extra); * Lucomar Anastigmat f/6.3 lens, B, 25, 50, 100 speeds (¥28); * Milittle Name inferred from the katakana ミリトル. f/4.5 lens, T, B, 25, 50, 100, 200 speeds (¥48). The advertising picture shows the model with Lucomar f/6.3. The lens appears to be fixed-focus but it is probable that the f/4.5 variant has front-cell focusing. The shutter plate is marked Optochrom at the top and something beginning with DUPL at the bottom (perhaps "Duplex"), with a logo in a circle on the right perhaps reading DK. The Lucomar and Optochrom brand names indicate that the lens and shutter were made by Kigawa. The markings on the shutter plate are similar to those found on the original version of the Baby Chrome illustrated in the same leaflet. The nameplate at the top reads Union Ref, and there is a YS logo in a circle in the middle of the viewing hood. This logo might stand for [[Yamashita|'Y'''amashita '''S'hōten]] but this is merely a guess. The Hansa Rollette Ref The Hansa Rollette Ref (ハンザ・ローレット・レフ) was distributed by Ōmiya Shashin-yōhin, owner of the "Hansa" brand. The nameplate is only marked Rollette Ref, and there is no YS logo. The Hansa Rollette Ref was featured in the new products column of the February 1936 issue of , reproduced above. Column in February 1936, pp.329–30. The document mentions a Triver The Triver spelling is inferred from the katakana トリバー and the Triver lens name found on a Ricohflex B. f/8 meniscus lens (単玉), and 100, 50, 25, B, T speeds. The dimensions are 12×9×8.5cm, and the price is . The camera also appears in the catalogue of Yamashita Yūjirō Shōten dated April 20, 1937, together with the Hansa Semi Rollette 4.5×6cm folder. Extract of the catalogue reproduced in , p.84. In this document, the price is unchanged at — case ¥4 extra. Nothing is said of the lens and shutter, and there is a picture showing three cameras. Notes Bibliography Original documents * Anonymous company. Leaflet for the Victory, Semi Dymos, Reex, Baby Ref, Union Ref and Baby Chrome. Date not indicated. Document reproduced in this Flickr album by Rebollo_fr. * February 1936. "Atarashii kikai to zairyō" (新しい機械と材料, New equipment and machinery). Pp.329–30. Recent sources * Item 183. * P.23. * P.54 (brief mention only). These cameras are not listed in . Links In Japanese: * Hansa Rollette Ref in the Camera database of the Center of the History of Japanese Industrial Technology Category: Japanese 4.5x6 pseudo TLR Union Ref Hansa Rollette Ref Rollette Ref Category: 1936